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Let’s Talk About Working On Reserve

/ Dav / 1 Comment

Usually, when you work a reserve trip, you are getting the worst assignment available. If a flight attendant has 18+ hours on a sandy beach, they’re less likely to get rid of that trip. A flight attendant is less likely to call in sick for a great trip, as well. I DO NOT condone using a sick day unless you indeed are sick. Actions like that will come back to definitely bite you in the butt!

Since I’m based in Denver, I have decent seniority- I’ve been here long enough that I never have to work reserve unless I pick up a reserve block by my own choice. Usually, that means I’m helping out a friend, or maybe I’m trying to get more hours in the month. It’s a rare thing but not unheard of. I wait for the call from scheduling- I cross my fingers and say a prayer that I don’t get a bad trip. This week, I did get lucky with my assignment.

On the second night of my trip, I ended up in Nashville, Tennessee, after working two short legs. I was given over twenty hours in music city, so I decided to head downtown and find an early dinner. I ended up at Jack’s on broadway. This restaurant is a definite tourist attraction, but it also has some really great barbecue! This is one of my favorite overnights!

After dinner, I searched on my phone to see if there were any shows or events in town. I was hoping to find a good deal on last-minute tickets. I, once again, got lucky! It is with great excitement that I can now check off number 44 of my bucket list! Even at this late hour, I managed to get myself a ticket to the Grand Ole Opry!

Since I had a few hours to kill before the show started, I decided to take a tour of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. This was amazing! Memorabilia from so many of the artists that I grew up listening to!

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The concert was amazing- they had been having it at the Opry house, but this time they were back at the Ryman, which is something that I have always wanted to experience!

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The artists who performed were Jeannie Sealy, Mike Snider, Kelsey Waldon, Jon Conlee, Connie Smith, Jamey Johnson, Riders In The Sky, Jesse McReynolds, Jamie Lynn Spears, Bill Anderson, The SteelDrivers, and Kristian Busch. Jamey Johnson surprised everyone and brought Allison Krauss!

So- all of the artists played two songs, but when Kristian Busch got to the, he only played one song. I thought that was rather odd since he appeared to be the headliner for that evening. When he left the stage, the announcer said that we would have a commercial break, and then he had a surprise for us. Since it was getting late, I decided that it was time to head back to my hotel. I had to be up early the following day.

I left through the gift shop, and as I was purchasing a shot glass, the lady ringing me up told me that there was a surprise and that I needed to head back into the auditorium. I told her that I had to be up early, but she looked me in the eye and said, “Trust me! There’s a surprise, and you need to go back into the auditorium!”. I found that odd but did as she said. As I re-entered the auditorium, I saw a band setting up, but nobody singer was approaching yet.

All of a sudden, GARTH BROOKS walks out. The crowd went wild! Suddenly, I’m incredibly grateful that the gift store clerk didn’t let me leave! After singing The Thunder Rolls, Garth said, “I want to introduce you to someone!” TRISHA YEARWOOD walks out! I’m beaming! Did you know that hearing Trisha Yearwood sing live is number 97 on my bucket list, and hearing Garth Brooks sing live is number 120 (not even kidding)!

/ Dav / Leave a comment

Yesterday morning, as I was coming through the security line at Denver International Airport, the T.S.A. agent stopped his work for a moment and pointed up to the overhanging balcony. I turned and noticed that the flag was being presented for a 9/11 memorial tribute. It amazed me how fast the thousands of passengers in the security suddenly got quiet to show their respect. The world just stopped.

After a moment of silence, Amazing Grace was played on the bagpipes, and I did get a little teary-eyed. I love how we, as an American people are able to take this horrible act of terror and turn it into a day of remembrance, prayer, and reflection on what makes this nation so great! I don’t think the men who committed these atrocities, fifteen years ago, knew that they would ultimately, and in many ways bring us together and make us stronger.

Where were you on that day? I was living in North Logan, Utah at the time. I remember my dear friend Brooke calling me and telling me to turn on the TV because “We were bombed!”. I asked her what channel to turn to- she told me ANY CHANNEL. Soon, I realized that it wasn’t a bomb, but a plane had been flown into one of the buildings at the World Trade Center in New York City. My eyes stayed glued to the television and I remembered being so frightened as I watched the second plane collide with the second building.

One of my crashpad roommates, Amy, has her own tradition where she never works on September Eleventh. She puts on her flight attendant uniform and goes to 9/11 memorial grounds at Ground Zero in Manhattan to pay tribute to those who lost their lives on that day. I would like to make this my new tradition. She and I have decided to organize a group of friends and fellow flight attendants who want to attend this event in 2017. I figure a year is plenty of time to plan this. Perhaps this can become a new tradition for myself and others as well.

Tonight I’m in Buffalo, New York.

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It seems that work has me staying in a pretty good hotel here but in a not-so-good location. My dinner choices were either the hotel bar or a nearby Mcdonald’s. Since this Mcdonald’s has a higher restaurant review online than the hotel bar (according to Yelp.com), I decided to treat myself to a “classic” dinner. It’s probably been about 14 years since I’ve had a Big Mac. They really don’t taste any better than they did back then. At least I can have a McFlurry for dessert.

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